Writing for the BRE, Helen Garrett (national government data and insights lead) says that local authorities are key to ensuring that support reaches the most vulnerable groups but need to identify people in those groups, work out what are the most effective energy efficiency improvements and then decide how to deliver those improvements.

New research by the Ocasa rental platform seems to show that, for the time being at least, the private rented sector continues to be the preferred pick for many investors. The research shows that the rate of growth in the number of homes in the UK over the last decade was 7.5%, the rate of growth in PRS over the same period was 12.2%.

The national residential landlords association has put forward a solution that they say will streamline workloads for landlords and make it easier for the "vast majority of compliant landlords to prove to tenants what they already do, namely providing decent and safe housing" and that those landlords who don't so prove their bona fides "will have no option but to shape up or ship out."

A banning order has been granted against a landlord in Cambridge who was found guilty of "failing to comply with legal instruction to keep his tenants safe.".

Reading through residential property media these days isn’t guaranteed to calm a landlord’s nerves nor, for that matter, those of the average tenant, agent, environmental health officer or councillor. The sector seems to be experiencing a fever dream and it might be a while before the fever breaks.

The government has released its latest (2021) english landlord survey. Whilst unlikely to reach the top of the literary best seller lists the survey does provide a revealing snapshot of landlords operating in the private rented sector in the country.

In an ongoing crackdown on non compliant landlords with properties inside Doncaster's Edlington selective licence area, the council has issued 5 fines to landlords for licence breaches. The council says the fines handed out ranged from £500 to £2,940 and were imposed on landlords who failed to provide licence "compliance documents" when requested by the council.

Nottingham city council's executive board has approved a proposal for a new selective licence scheme to start in 2023 when its current scheme comes to an end. The city has a private rented sector estimated at just over 45,000 properties with a growth in size since 2011 from 25% of properties to 33% in 2021.

A new report from the county councils network (CCN) produced in collaboration with transformation and improvement specialists, Newton, claims that the Govt has underestimated the costs of new social care reforms to go live in 2023 until 2032 by around £10 billion.

Aiming to help "up to 20,000 more children and young people" the Government's new "Turnaround" scheme aims to catch young people before they fall into criminality - the cost to the economy of late intervention is estimated to be £17 billion.

The work & pensions secretary, Therese Coffey MP, has written to the chief executive of Ofgem, Jonathan Brearley, to express her concerns about some utility companies withdrawing from the Fuel Direct scheme set up to support customers who are DWP claimants and who are in arrears or are struggling to pay their home energy bills.

The department for business energy and industrial strategy (BEIS) has published updated guidance for people looking to upgrade home heating systems using low carbon technology such as heat pumps and biomass boilers.

The LGA has voiced worries that councils will likely lose qualified and experienced staff to national regulators (such as the health and safety executive for example). The concerns were expressed in the LGA's response to the NAO's report "Regulating After EU Exit" where the NAO referenced workload capacity and consequent recruitment issues for UK national regulators taking over functions previously carried out at EU level.

Hammersmith & Fulham council's new selective and additional licence schemes are set to commence on 5th June this year. The designated area of the current selective licence scheme, which is about to end just before the new scheme starts, has been reduced from 128 streets in the borough to just 24 streets (the council provides a list of these 24 streets on its webpage).

Southwark council has successfully prosecuted the landlord of a block of flats in the borough where 12 tenants had been crammed into space meant for half that number. The block had planning permission for 6 flats but the landlord made 7 flats out of the available space and 3 of them had "unauthorised" second bedrooms which further reduced the living space. The size of 6 of the flats was below minimum standards and 5 had no dedicated storage space.

The secretary of state at the DLUHC, Michael Gove MP, has written to the financial conduct authority saying "It is neither fair nor decent that innocent leaseholders should be landed with bills they cannot afford as a result of problems they did not cause.".

Published for financially vulnerable people in receipt of benefits the DWP's "Introduction to Budgeting Loans" is useful for tenants living in the private rented sector who wish to apply for a covering loan via their benefits to pay for essentials.

The Govt's Household Support Fund designed to help financially vulnerable households with funding for essentials such as food, rent, utilities and furniture has been unavailable to applicants in some areas of the country after some Local Authorities "ran out of money.".

In a study carried out by EDF in partnership with property data platform, Sprift, it's been found that out of 21 million homes studied in England and Wales, more than half only had insulation that met the standards of the mid 1970s or older and less than 10% had an "insulation age" of 2002 or younger.

Perhaps in response to the open letter sent by charities to the Sec' of State for Work and Pensions calling for more safeguarding and support for vulnerable people being migrated onto universal credit, the Govt has published guidance for those who are helping/supporting people who need help with their benefits claim.

With new rental reform legislation in the pipeline and at least 36 pieces of current legislation and associated regulations to cope with as well as, in some areas, local authority selective licensing conditions and associated fees it can seem for private landlords as if they are under the cosh on a permanent basis. But what’s the reality, and are private landlords, as a class, “hard done by”?

Research from price comparison website comparethemarket reportedly shows that many renters have stopped their home contents insurance as part of their money saving strategy for dealing with the current cost of living crisis.

Though not directly referred to in the Queen's speech, the binning of s.21 eviction notices is, effectively, the headline act in the briefly mentioned rental reform part of yesterday's speech where the Govt outlined its legislative menu for this parliament.

The DWP has officially announced details of its migration of people in receipt of legacy benefits onto universal credit (UC). Private sector landlords will need to be aware of this process as it will affect any whose tenants are (or were) still receiving the old style benefits such as income support and housing benefit.

After halting (in March) its public consultation on a new and expanded selective licensing scheme, West Lindsey council's prosperous communities committee has set up a working group of councillors and council officers to look into the concerns that caused the consultation to be halted. The working group has been tasked with providing a progress report to the committee at its meeting set for 19th July.

In an open letter to work and pensions secretary, Therese Coffey, a group of charities has requested that DWP pause migrating vulnerable people from old style benefits (such as housing benefit) onto universal credit (UC). The group, which includes charities MIND, the Trussell Trust, Shelter and Disability Rights UK, says that vulnerable people who are less well able to deal with DWP may be left destitute without the right support and safeguarding in place before they are migrated off the old style benefits system.

The landlord of a warehouse on an industrial estate in Haringey, north London has been ordered by the First Tier Tribunal to pay £31,000 in rent repayment to a number of tenants who lived in the warehouse. The landlord stated in evidence that she had bought the warehouse in 2009 for £650K but the land registry record showed that she had bought the property in 2011 for £360K - the landlord "could not explain this discrepancy.".

Burnley council has announced that, after an 11 week public consultation, it has received approval from DLUHC to renew/extend its selective licensing scheme covering around 2000 homes in the borough.

In a case dealing with the question of whether rent repayment orders can be made against a superior landlord rather than the immediate direct landlord, the question will now be decided by the Supreme Court in late 2022 or early 2023 and will be of great importance to private sector landlords who let their properties with a clause allowing the tenant to sublet.

Concentrating on accessibility, safety and standards the NRLA's In Focus quarterly PRS report claims that landlord business confidence has risen across England and Wales (overall, for the 5th consecutive quarter) and in a higher number of regions than previously.

Whilst distancing itself from this type of private rental, the Govt has published an updated guidance booklet for property guardians (who often take on the role of guardian because it provides a cheaper form of accommodation than other types of private rental tenure and can be easier to access than scarce social rented accommodation).